Hallmark Channel fans and stars are joyfully neck-deep in all things Christmas, with round-the-clock holiday programming and in-person events like the 2025 Hallmark Christmas Experience. But when January rolls around, Hallmarkies will have some new star-studded movies to look forward to.
Some of the network’s top stars — from Lacey Chabert to Kristoffer Polaha to Luke Macfarlane — will appear in Hallmark’s 2026 “Winter Escape” movies, an annual programming event featuring destination movies filmed around the world. Here’s the just-released schedule of new Hallmark movies for January and a new unscripted series to boot…
‘Lost in Paradise’ is Lacey Chabert & Ian Harding’s New Hallmark Channel Movie
Chabert, who stars with Andrew Walker in “She’s Making a List” on December 6, revealed in September that she’d just returned from Fiji, where she’d been filming a new movie with another Hallmark fan-favorite, Ian Harding.
According to Hallmark, “Lost in Paradise” will premiere on January 3 at 8 p.m. Eastern time. The movie’s synopsis says, “When the founder of a high-end fashion company gets marooned on an “deserted” island with a chef, romance blossoms as they work together to survive.”
When Chabert shared news of their movie, Harding adorably wrote in his Instagram stories, “I truly can’t believe @thereallacey put up with me for a month.” Fans of Harding had been waiting for word of Hallmark’s premiere of his limited series “Ripple,” which was announced in August 2024. But in a surprise move, the show has since been acquired by Netflix and premiered there instead on December 3.
Kristoffer Polaha & Emilie Ullerup to Co-Star in Hallmark Channel’s ‘Missing the Boat’
Fresh off his starring role in “A Grand Ole Opry Christmas,” Polaha will star opposite “Chesapeake Shores” alum Emilie Ullerup in “Missing the Boat,” scheduled to finish out the month on January 31. According to the synopsis, “Strangers Kelly and Parker both end up on the same Italian cruise, but after missing the boat during a stop, they’re forced to team up and race across southern Italy to catch up.”
In an Instagram post about the upcoming flick, filmed in Bulgaria, Ullerup wrote that it was “one of my favorite experiences to date.”
Polaha commented that “every single day was a joy and a blessing making this film” and predicted that she would give “Lucile Ball a run for her money with this performance.”Polaha also pointed out that Ullerup was one of his first Hallmark movie co-stars (in 2016’s “Hearts of Christmas”) noting that it was “fitting we get to celebrate 10 years in hallmark together!”
Luke Macfarlane & Rachel Leigh Cook Team Up for ‘Caught by Love’
GettyTwo more Hallmark fan-favorites, Rachael Leigh Cook and Luke Macfarlane, will co-star in “Caught By Love” on January 24. The synopsis says, “While on a journey of self-discovery, a resort guest gets swept into an undercover investigation for stolen jewels that turns into an unexpected and adventurous romance.”
In early October, Cook posted on Instagram that she was in Malta — a spot Hallmark has filmed in multiple times in recent years — and that her parents visited, too, writing, “MALTA, you’re a beauty. Thank you for taking such good care of me and my gorgeous parents. They’re home safe and raving about you to anyone who will listen 🇲🇹 ✨🫶”
On December 1, she and Macfarlane appeared alongside multiple Christmas movie veterans, including Hallmark’s Jonathan Bennett, on an episode of FOX’s “The Weakest Link” featuring “Holiday Heroes.” Putting his holiday hero status in question, Macfarlane hilariously forgot the name of Mariah Carey’s hit “All I Want For Christmas is You.”
Jaicy Elliott Among Stars Returning to Hallmark Channel in January
HallmarkOn January 17, “Grey’s Anatomy” actress Jaicy Elliott returns to Hallmark opposite Rafael de la Fuente in “Love on the Amazon.” The “Romance in Style” star will play Gabby, who “travels to the Amazon to reach her sister, a researcher, and meets a rugged riverboat Captain named Ryder.”
Also coming in January, Mallory Jansen and Ryan Corr star in “A Melbourne Match.” She plays Georgie, “a travel writer, travels to Melbourne for an assignment where she meets Zach, an Australian ex-footballer who agrees to be her tour guide and shows her that there’s more to life than work.”
And in a New Year’s Day surprise, Hallmark+ will exclusively debut a new unscripted series called “Second Chance Love,” Hallmark announced on December 3. The series will be hosted by Matthew Lawrence and Chilli, who’ve been dating since 2022.
